Men’s Work Stations: Where Germs are At Work

Germs are probably the last thing you think about when you go to the office. Of course, when you come to the office and sit down at your cubicle, you already mean business. And by business, you mean, how you can stay on top of your game in Utah’s competitive business industry.

But in other rare times when the idea of germs does pass your mind, you think they’re well away from your workstation — being in the bathrooms or pantry. Not so fast. There’s science saying that the dirtiest place in your office is just under your nose and you come in contact with them every day — workstations. Of men.

The Unseen, Unexpected Filth

Scientists have long been intrigued about bacteria in office spaces. They know that there are tons of germs everywhere (Forte Commercial Cleaning Utah would tell you the same), but they’re curious as to where exactly they are.

So, a group of researchers went to offices in three different cities/states, three buildings for each city/state, and ten offices for each building. They collected 450 bacterial samples, labeling each as to where they got it from — say a desk, keyboard, chair, and so on. They also noted the person’s gender occupying the workstation.

They ran the tests. And the results were in. The germs most abundant on offices are bacteria from human skin, the nose, mouth, and surprisingly, intestinal cavities. Other germs were from soil or dust.

As for the places these germs frequented on? Chairs and phones registered the most number of bacteria. These all point to the fact that regular office cleaning is important. Dirt, air pollutants, and clutter all affect your employees’ health and productivity.

Consider getting in touch with a cleaning company; South Jordan experts use specialized tools to clean electronics and fragile fixtures.

Gender and Germs

More interestingly, though, the scientists found that the amount of bacteria has a significant link to the gender of the person occupying the workstation. There are more germs in men’s stations compared with in women’s.

The researchers said that there could be two possible reasons for this. One is that men are generally larger in size than women. With more surface area that can be breeding grounds for bacteria, there’s a higher chance of germs being transferred to their desks.

The other reason is men are just less hygienic than women, with a majority not washing hands after peeing. As such, their workstations are just not the cleanest places in the office.

Germs are most likely lurking in your desks, phones, and chairs. Keep them off your workstations by regularly having professional maintenance cleaning.